Seattle Seahawks: Jadaveon Clowney return would be bad investment
Chris Phillips
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The Seattle Seahawks pass rush is far from effective. Some 12’s want to bring back Jadaveon Clowney. That’s a bad idea.
Reports out of Nashville have former Seattle Seahawks defensive lineman Jadeveon Clowney is headed for free agency once again. These kinds of rumors happen every offseason. Team X needs help at a particular position. Player A plays the position of need. Add them together, and people say, “Yes! That’s a great idea. Let’s make it happen”.
Sure, the logic is sound, and it’s plausible, but it’s not always that simple. No matter the circumstance, the Seahawks re-signing Clowney is a bad idea.
Clowney is an excellent example of a player making a living/career off one signature play. If you’re someone who’s not sure what that is, go to YouTube and type his name (check out the version with the Jim Ross soundbite). That play is still amazing, but Clown hasn’t done anything close to that in the NFL.
The first overall pick in the 2014 draft by the Houston Texans has been a bust of sorts. At the time, Houston thought they were getting a perfect complement to JJ Watt, and the two of them would wreak havoc in the AFC South. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out that way.
Comparisons
Throughout his seven-year career, Clowney has 32 sacks. For comparison, T.J. Watt, drafted three years later, has 49.5 career sacks. Clowney is a good player, but he’s not the elite pass rusher he believes himself to be. His highest sack total in a year was 9.5 in 2017. His total sacks have been in decline since then.
Watt averages 12.4 sacks a year compared to Clowney’s 4.6. If Clowney hit his year average of sacks he would have finished 2020 tied for 69th in the NFL. Four other defensive ends, two defensive tackles, and linebackers totaled 4.5 sacks.
It’s not just in sacks where Clowney falls short. Watt averages 27.75 QB hits a season. That is more than double Clowney’s 12.29. As a matter of fact, he’s closer to Jabaal Sheard. Sheard averages 9.8 QB hits and 5.3 sacks a year.
Last year, Clowney signed a one-year, $13M deal with Tennessee. Meanwhile, Sheard’s contract paid him $679K. Sheard was a better investment picking up 1.5 sacks more than Clowney’s 0 (they both got 6 QB hits). The former number one pick will once again ask for an eight-figure salary.
The Seattle Seahawks need to improve their pass rush, but Clowney isn’t the answer. While he does have many good qualities, with the Seahawks limited cap space. He is too expensive and doesn’t put up good enough numbers.
JADEVEON CLOWNEY IS A TITAN pic.twitter.com/VuqIHSiyv6
— Nick Lombardi (@NF_Lombardi) September 6, 2020
What do you think about bringing Jadaveon Clowney back to the Seattle Seahawks? Let us know in the comments section below or on social media.